The Stages of Vipassana - 5th stage of vipassana nana

The fifth stage of vipassana nana is knowledge of dissolution (bhanga nana).
Even though the fourth stage of vipassana nana clearly realises the arising and falling away of one characteristic of nama and of rupa at a time, clinging to them is still very persistent. Clinging to all realities has been accumulated for an endlessly long time in the cycle of birth and death. Ignorance and clinging to the concept of self are like firmly implanted roots that are hard to pull up. Panna has to be developed more thoroughly through satipatthana. There must be awareness and investigation again and again of the arising and falling away of nama and rupa which was already realised at the fourth stage of insight. Panna should investigate more thoroughly the falling away of the namas and rupas that appear. Then it can be seen that dhammas that fall away cannot be any refuge. Through the development of satipatthana panna becomes keener and more accomplished so that there are the right conditions for the fifth stage of vipassana nana, namely, knowledge of dissolution (bhanga nana). This stage of vipassana clearly realises that nama and rupa that arise and fall away cannot be any refuge, that they cannot give any security. Then there is the beginning of the third parinna, the “full understanding of abandoning” (pahana parinna). This parinna can lead to higher stages of panna, to panna that begins to detach from clinging to the idea of self, being or person.